


Untouched

by TheOnlyWife



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Ghost Cores (Danny Phantom), Government Experimentation, Implied/Referenced Torture, Imprisonment, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-12
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:20:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26965840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheOnlyWife/pseuds/TheOnlyWife
Summary: The ecto-dejecto was never meant to last long. Danielle had come crawling back after a few weeks of travelling the country, nearly melting just the same as when she’d left. But once she stepped foot in town, she was surrounded.
Relationships: Danny Fenton & Danielle "Dani" Phantom
Comments: 5
Kudos: 36





	Untouched

“Do you know what a supernova is?” Danny asks, slumped over on the wall. He sounds out of breath, as if he hasn’t been sitting here for hours now.

Danielle, who was lying down next to him, doesn’t answer. Whenever she tries to tell him no, all that comes out is a pained whimper.

“It’s like a really big explosion in space.” Danny shifts a bit against the wall, but lets out a grunt of pain in doing so. “There was one in 1604. A long time ago, but I’m sure it was beautiful to watch.”

It’s very nice of Danny to try and cheer her up. Even after his most recent experiment. It was only a few hours ago that threw his half-drugged body back into their shared cell. ‘Cell’ didn’t feel like the right word, considering the padded walls, but it was most certainly being used like one.

She dragged him over to sit by the wall with her as gently as she could. He could barely walk at that point. The white uniform they both had on was always dirty. Ectoplasm, blood, sweat. It stained so easily.

“Really?” she mumbles, eyes not leaving the untouched ceiling. It was the only place not covered with ectoplasm.

“Yeah.” he says back, before a blood laced cough is forced out of his throat. Once his lungs can breathe again he continues. “Every century or so there’s another one. But technically they’re called Supernovae. With an ‘A’ and an ‘E’.”

Danielle wants to talk to him, really she does. But she can’t. The experiment they did on her was gruesome. They took samples of her hands and arms inch by inch. They said if she fought back, they’d slice off her tongue. She didn’t think they were kidding.

The pain was bad, but not the worst she’s felt. Just bad enough that making noise, any noise, or moving at all hurts.

That was nothing compared to what they were doing to Danny, though. She never saw anything directly, but she saw the bloodied bandages through his white uniform. It was never white for long.

And Danny asked for this. Not being captured by the ‘idiots in white’, as he put it. But being put through the procedures. All in return for not hurting her as much. She’d normally say that she could take it. That she could be strong so that he didn’t have to do that.

But she wasn’t.

The ecto-dejecto was never meant to last long. She’d come crawling back after a few weeks of travelling the country, nearly melting just the same as when she’d left. 

“How big are they?” she manages to say very softly.

“Huge.” Danny smiles. She was glad that he didn’t look as sad and pathetic as she felt. Even if he was being cut open and drugged every day, he managed to smile just for her.

“Think you’re ready for another round cuz?” he asks quietly. It’s not for comforts sake, but so that the cameras and microphones couldn’t pick it up. She nods once, letting Danny help sit her up. 

“Ok, then.” he holds out his hand for her to take. The bands on their wrists, glowing dimly with a green light, were not only trackers, but like portable ghost shields. The GIW couldn’t have ghost shields everywhere they liked, not with so many new ghosts being brought in every day. It would be a hassle to activate and deactivate them so often. So they developed this instead. 

It looked like a regular metal, high-tech bracelet, if the ectoplasmic color was ignored. But there was something akin to a tether attached. Like those parking lots where the carts could only be taken so far before the wheels locked up. Dani’s been to a store before...she thinks. Where else could she have learned about that? Maybe Danny told her about it once, trying to distract her.

Either way, she didn’t want to know what would happen if she tried to pull on the tether. Not like she was strong enough to fly in the first place.

They’ve been doing this for a few days now, ever since Danny discovered it was possible. Once she takes his hand he lets a small ectoblast-looking glow imbue his hand, covered up by her own pale white hands.

She felt the energy flow into her hand, up her arms, and into her core. Underdeveloped as it was, it was still working. Which meant it was always looking for energy. In this case, it was Danny’s.

At first she felt bad about taking away what was essentially his life force, but he reassured her that they were supplying him with plenty of fresh ectoplasm. The scientists said it was so that his wounds would heal. They said it was a small mercy and that he should be grateful. 

Dani knew it was because the faster he healed, the more they could operate. Jerks for telling Danny that he should thank them for cutting him open like an animal.

Slowly, very slowly, the wounds on her hands and arms healed. Inch by inch the skin formed back over the bloody, green flesh and torn muscles. It looked like strings of bright green yarn being thickened and pulled together, before being covered by a blanket of skin. It’s usually supposed to hurt, but ectoplasm has some weird numbing properties. Or at least, that’s what Danny said.

With a deep breath, she finally feels like she can say “Thanks.”

Danny slumps back against the wall, panting harder than before. He keeps his right hand laced with hers, but his grip was barely above a gentle squeeze. This...tiredness always happened, but tonight seems worse.

“You ok?” she hesitantly asks. It’s not unusual for him to be tired, but for him to be out of breath was new.

“Yeah. Just...had to give you more tonight.” he tells her in between strained and wheezing gasps.

“You know that’s a bad idea.” she scolds him, concerned. He’s done this before on accident. He poured too much into her and could barely stand the pain from the scalpels for more than a minute. He refused to give her details, but she could imagine what he went through that day.

“I know.” he tries to reassure her. “It’s for a reason.”

“Are you going to tell me what that reason is?” 

“You’ll know soon enough.” he gives her a small smile. “Just trust me.”

She didn’t know how long she’d have to wait, but she trusts him. Trusts him all the way up until his limber body falls onto the floor next to her. He’s still holding onto her hand, but it’s by just a thread.

“Danny?” she asks tentatively. She tries shaking him gently, but he just lets out a hoarse laugh, which stops her.

“Wait for it.” he says quietly.

It was then that the bands around both of her wrists crackled. Like electricity was being put into it. She looks at her hand, where Danny was holding, and sees green sparks being put off of it. She would have pulled away, but Danny held on just a bit tighter.

“Just wait.” he whispers, looking more weak than before.

Suddenly the bracelets snap in half, cracking at the seams and falling off of her wrists. She doesn’t have time to ask what happened. Just as suddenly an alarm goes off. It sounded like the flood warning alarms she’s heard once before.

“You don’t have much time.” Danny chokes out, trying to keep his voice loud enough for her to hear. “Fly away. Go intangible or invisible. Do whatever you can to get out of here.”

Dani can’t believe what she’s hearing. “What about you?”

He lets out a small laugh. “Me? I’ll be fine. But you have to go.”

“I-I’m not leaving without you.” she says, standing up. She tries to lift him up by his arm, but when he lets out a yelp of pain, she sets him back down. She forgot about his recent experiment. She wants to apologize, but knows that she doesn’t have the time.

“Danielle. Leave. Now.” Danny says as loud and as demanding as she’s heard in a long time. “You know what you have to do.”

She can’t argue any more when she hears shouts outside of the sole entrance. “I’m sorry.” is all she can say as she flies to the untouched ceiling. She uses Danny’s strength to turn herself intangible all the way through the thick ceiling. She passes by a few layers of more cells, but doesn’t stop until she sees the starry night sky.

She doesn’t have time to stargaze for long. They’re going to follow. And they’re going to follow her _fast_. She takes off in the direction she feels is right. The trees pass below her quickly, but not quick enough for her liking. If she’s going to do this, she needs to get as far away from those people as she can.

She never wants to see Danny in pain again. And he was right. She does know what to do.

The Fentons have been missing their son for weeks now. If someone, even if it’s a ghost, shows up and says they know where he is...well, she hopes they’ll listen.

**Author's Note:**

> All comments are welcome and appreciated! Even just a <3 as an extra kudos!


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